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Foreign work experience in the activity history (worried about misrep.)

CNtower92

Full Member
Oct 24, 2020
35
0
Hey everyone,

I hope all is doing well.
I am panicking right now because I submitted my citizenship application and discovered that I made a minor mistake, well dont know if its minor.
In the activity section of last five years I had from June 2019 to June 2024
Now part of that time from I was my at my work back home. I filled it out and due to me forgetting exact dates I put in Job X from 2016 to June 2019 and Job Y from July 2019 to October 2020 one month before coming to Canada.

Now yesterday I came across my PR application documents and remembered the dates my job at X terminated in May 2019 and it dragged along with visa cancellations and all that till end of May 2019, then I signed my new contract in June 2019 but starting Job Y in July 2019 which makes me unemployed in June 2019.
Will that reflect on me as misrepresenting? Because in my PR package my employment letter clearly showed end date was early May so best case it dragged to end of May and now my citizsnship application shows that I ended it in June.

Please let me know what you think

Appreciated @dpenabill @canuck78 @armoured and others of course
 

CNtower92

Full Member
Oct 24, 2020
35
0
You can raise a webform request and provide IRCC with proper info by including letter of explanation.
Thank you but does it signify a major concern? If it helps bg check and all checks are completed but I am still worried that it might cause an issue somehow
 

dpenabill

VIP Member
Apr 2, 2010
6,435
3,183
In the activity section of last five years I had from June 2019 to June 2024
Now part of that time from I was my at my work back home. I filled it out and due to me forgetting exact dates I put in Job X from 2016 to June 2019 and Job Y from July 2019 to October 2020 one month before coming to Canada.

Will that reflect on me as misrepresenting? Because in my PR package my employment letter clearly showed end date was early May so best case it dragged to end of May and now my citizsnship application shows that I ended it in June.
As I responded to same query elsewhere, I am NO expert, but my sense is there is nothing to worry about here.

So . . . My GUESS (emphasis on it being a guess) is that there is no problem . . . assuming I understand the situation correctly.

Probably no need to do anything other than be prepared to explain the discrepancy, the mistake, if IRCC inquires about your work/activity during that period of time (such as during an interview).

Further, Longer Observations . . . probably far more than needed, more in the vein of just-in-case:

If I understand the situation correctly, your concern is about having mistakenly stated, in your citizenship application work/activity history, that you were employed by XYZ employer in June 2019, when you were actually unemployed that month or for some period of that month, and this was a period of time you were living and employed/unemployed outside Canada prior to becoming a PR.

If that is the situation, I do not understand what it is you are worried about. That would indeed be a minor discrepancy outside the scope of what matters much at all in assessing your eligibility for a grant of citizenship. Hard to imagine this being flagged by an IRCC processing agent or citizenship officer, let alone causing a credibility concern, let alone being a potential misrepresentation issue.

That is, I do not see how or why this would be a problem.

But I am NO expert.

Besides that . . .
frankly, whenever someone is panicky about having potentially made misrepresentations in reporting their history, I fear there is something about their situation which they know is likely to be a problem. How so? That tends to be complicated.

Moreover . . . as I also noted in my response elsewhere, there is some confusion about just what it is you reported in your citizenship application in regards to your work/activity history. You state:
". . . due to me forgetting exact dates I put in Job X from 2016 to June 2019 and Job Y from July 2019 to October 2020 one month before coming to Canada . . ."​
Obviously, "from 2016 to June 2019" is mostly outside your eligibility period which appears to be "from June 2019 to June 2024."

This still seems to NOT be something to worry about. Still seems like NO PROBLEM.

So, just In Case . . .

. . . mostly just in case there is some other reason why IRCC might have cause to question or doubt the information you have provided.

Again, I am no expert. I am nowhere near qualified to assess and offer personal advice in a specific individual's case. Moreover, this forum is not anywhere near appropriate for sharing the kind of detail necessary to conduct any such assessment let alone engage in an exchange of personal information sufficient for giving personal advice.

That caveat applies in particular to questions about potential misrepresentation.

On one hand I very much want to avoid causing unnecessary concern or alarm. Minor discrepancies, particularly those outside the scope of what matters much, should NOT be cause for concern. We all make mistakes (those who believe they made no mistakes are making the big mistake of failing to recognize they did make mistakes).

On the other hand, when someone expresses panic about making misrepresentations in an application to IRCC, I am hesitant to casually overlook or brush aside the risk there could be something negatively affecting their credibility or even leading to allegations of misrepresentation.

If this really is ONLY about reporting work/activity for a five year time period beginning in June 2019 up to a date in June 2024, in which you mistakenly reported you were employed by XYZ employer in June 2019, when you were actually unemployed that month, or for some period of that month, and that was when you were living and employed/unemployed outside Canada prior to becoming a PR, again it is hard to imagine this is cause for any concern at all . . . it appears to be a minor and largely irrelevant discrepancy, and thus no problem.

BUT . . . yes, a yeah-but . . . again, just in case there is more to it . . .

Personal and other records are the appropriate source of information used when reporting historical information in applications to IRCC. Memory of work-history is merely a tool for cross-checking what we report as our work-history, NOT a sufficiently reliable source. If however the records do not jive with memory, time to drill deeper into the records to verify the information.

Memory is a rather poor source for particular information, and especially so in regards to precise dates. That said, what applicants report needs to be as consistent with their memory as possible.

And of course what is reported in an application should be consistent with what the applicant has otherwise reported . . . mostly in regards to what they have otherwise reported to IRCC, such as in a previous application for a visa or for PR . . . but also in regards to what they have reported elsewhere, almost anywhere. After all, IRCC can and it appears sometimes will compare employment information in applications with what the applicant has reported in LinkedIn, for example, or in other open sources including social media.

However, what an applicant has previously reported, or stated elsewhere, is subordinate to the mandate to be complete and accurate, to be not just truthful but honest in providing information (and yes there is a difference, and yes an applicant should be both, both truthful and honest). Thus, for example, if there is some discrepancy between the honest answer to a question and what was reported in a previous visa application, there is NO doubt, in an application for citizenship the applicant MUST report the truth (as best and as honestly as the applicant can).

The applicant can include an explanation (supplemental information or LoE) if the discrepancy could be cause for concern. No need to do that for many if not most minor discrepancies.

If, however, there is a significant discrepancy as to information that could potentially make a difference in what IRCC decides (what IRCC considers to be "material" information), that is a more serious matter. This is where things get complicated. It is also where things are very dependent on the specific facts in the particular case.

EXAMPLE: In addition to differences between small inconsistencies compared to big ones (such as inconsistency for a month compared to a year), an inconsistency regarding work history IN Canada is likely to be more important than inconsistencies in work history prior to coming to Canada, since the primary relevance of work history is the extent to which it corroborates residency and physical presence in Canada.

That said, of course any discrepancies or inconsistencies can have a negative credibility impact, and thus even if way shy of being considered misrepresentation, negative credibility can cause non-routine processing and delays, or if there are serious credibility concerns cause IRCC to be more strict in assessing requirements. But here too, again, the nature of the discrepancy or inconsistency matters. And IRCC is generally not in the gotcha-game (despite complaints otherwise); it recognizes and allows significant leeway for mistakes.

The hard part is appraising the range of risk, quantifying the odds, particularly since there is rarely a direct correlation between the particular inconsistency and any particular level of concern by IRCC officials; the exact same factual discrepancy can have a very different impact depending on the other circumstances in a particular applicant's situation. Still, minor deviations regarding information that does not at least indirectly relate to the requirements for citizenship, are not likely to be cause for concern, let alone a problem, unless they are of a scope that indicates the applicant is an unreliable reporter of facts.

OVERALL:

Most applicants can reasonably recognize what matters, and if the applicant can see the information matters, and there is some discrepancy or inconsistency, best to be correcting it soon, or if it is something likely to make a difference in the outcome, that may mean it is time to lawyer-up.

(Note/caution: if in applying for citizenship the PR realizes they made a serious mistake in the information they reported in their PR visa application, best to see a lawyer

If it does not matter, probably enough to wait to see if IRCC has questions, and if IRCC has questions be prepared to accurately state the facts and explain how or why there was a mistake. EXCEPT, that is, unless it is an error, discrepancy, or inconsistency that is big enough to put the applicant's overall credibility into question.
 
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CNtower92

Full Member
Oct 24, 2020
35
0
As I responded to same query elsewhere, I am NO expert, but my sense is there is nothing to worry about here.

So . . . My GUESS (emphasis on it being a guess) is that there is no problem . . . assuming I understand the situation correctly.

Probably no need to do anything other than be prepared to explain the discrepancy, the mistake, if IRCC inquires about your work/activity during that period of time (such as during an interview).

Further, Longer Observations . . . probably far more than needed, more in the vein of just-in-case:

If I understand the situation correctly, your concern is about having mistakenly stated, in your citizenship application work/activity history, that you were employed by XYZ employer in June 2019, when you were actually unemployed that month or for some period of that month, and this was a period of time you were living and employed/unemployed outside Canada prior to becoming a PR.

If that is the situation, I do not understand what it is you are worried about. That would indeed be a minor discrepancy outside the scope of what matters much at all in assessing your eligibility for a grant of citizenship. Hard to imagine this being flagged by an IRCC processing agent or citizenship officer, let alone causing a credibility concern, let alone being a potential misrepresentation issue.

That is, I do not see how or why this would be a problem.

But I am NO expert.

Besides that . . .
frankly, whenever someone is panicky about having potentially made misrepresentations in reporting their history, I fear there is something about their situation which they know is likely to be a problem. How so? That tends to be complicated.

Moreover . . . as I also noted in my response elsewhere, there is some confusion about just what it is you reported in your citizenship application in regards to your work/activity history. You state:
". . . due to me forgetting exact dates I put in Job X from 2016 to June 2019 and Job Y from July 2019 to October 2020 one month before coming to Canada . . ."​
Obviously, "from 2016 to June 2019" is mostly outside your eligibility period which appears to be "from June 2019 to June 2024."

This still seems to NOT be something to worry about. Still seems like NO PROBLEM.

So, just In Case . . .

. . . mostly just in case there is some other reason why IRCC might have cause to question or doubt the information you have provided.

Again, I am no expert. I am nowhere near qualified to assess and offer personal advice in a specific individual's case. Moreover, this forum is not anywhere near appropriate for sharing the kind of detail necessary to conduct any such assessment let alone engage in an exchange of personal information sufficient for giving personal advice.

That caveat applies in particular to questions about potential misrepresentation.

On one hand I very much want to avoid causing unnecessary concern or alarm. Minor discrepancies, particularly those outside the scope of what matters much, should NOT be cause for concern. We all make mistakes (those who believe they made no mistakes are making the big mistake of failing to recognize they did make mistakes).

On the other hand, when someone expresses panic about making misrepresentations in an application to IRCC, I am hesitant to casually overlook or brush aside the risk there could be something negatively affecting their credibility or even leading to allegations of misrepresentation.

If this really is ONLY about reporting work/activity for a five year time period beginning in June 2019 up to a date in June 2024, in which you mistakenly reported you were employed by XYZ employer in June 2019, when you were actually unemployed that month, or for some period of that month, and that was when you were living and employed/unemployed outside Canada prior to becoming a PR, again it is hard to imagine this is cause for any concern at all . . . it appears to be a minor and largely irrelevant discrepancy, and thus no problem.

BUT . . . yes, a yeah-but . . . again, just in case there is more to it . . .

Personal and other records are the appropriate source of information used when reporting historical information in applications to IRCC. Memory of work-history is merely a tool for cross-checking what we report as our work-history, NOT a sufficiently reliable source. If however the records do not jive with memory, time to drill deeper into the records to verify the information.

Memory is a rather poor source for particular information, and especially so in regards to precise dates. That said, what applicants report needs to be as consistent with their memory as possible.

And of course what is reported in an application should be consistent with what the applicant has otherwise reported . . . mostly in regards to what they have otherwise reported to IRCC, such as in a previous application for a visa or for PR . . . but also in regards to what they have reported elsewhere, almost anywhere. After all, IRCC can and it appears sometimes will compare employment information in applications with what the applicant has reported in LinkedIn, for example, or in other open sources including social media.

However, what an applicant has previously reported, or stated elsewhere, is subordinate to the mandate to be complete and accurate, to be not just truthful but honest in providing information (and yes there is a difference, and yes an applicant should be both, both truthful and honest). Thus, for example, if there is some discrepancy between the honest answer to a question and what was reported in a previous visa application, there is NO doubt, in an application for citizenship the applicant MUST report the truth (as best and as honestly as the applicant can).

The applicant can include an explanation (supplemental information or LoE) if the discrepancy could be cause for concern. No need to do that for many if not most minor discrepancies.

If, however, there is a significant discrepancy as to information that could potentially make a difference in what IRCC decides (what IRCC considers to be "material" information), that is a more serious matter. This is where things get complicated. It is also where things are very dependent on the specific facts in the particular case.

EXAMPLE: In addition to differences between small inconsistencies compared to big ones (such as inconsistency for a month compared to a year), an inconsistency regarding work history IN Canada is likely to be more important than inconsistencies in work history prior to coming to Canada, since the primary relevance of work history is the extent to which it corroborates residency and physical presence in Canada.

That said, of course any discrepancies or inconsistencies can have a negative credibility impact, and thus even if way shy of being considered misrepresentation, negative credibility can cause non-routine processing and delays, or if there are serious credibility concerns cause IRCC to be more strict in assessing requirements. But here too, again, the nature of the discrepancy or inconsistency matters. And IRCC is generally not in the gotcha-game (despite complaints otherwise); it recognizes and allows significant leeway for mistakes.

The hard part is appraising the range of risk, quantifying the odds, particularly since there is rarely a direct correlation between the particular inconsistency and any particular level of concern by IRCC officials; the exact same factual discrepancy can have a very different impact depending on the other circumstances in a particular applicant's situation. Still, minor deviations regarding information that does not at least indirectly relate to the requirements for citizenship, are not likely to be cause for concern, let alone a problem, unless they are of a scope that indicates the applicant is an unreliable reporter of facts.

OVERALL:

Most applicants can reasonably recognize what matters, and if the applicant can see the information matters, and there is some discrepancy or inconsistency, best to be correcting it soon, or if it is something likely to make a difference in the outcome, that may mean it is time to lawyer-up.

(Note/caution: if in applying for citizenship the PR realizes they made a serious mistake in the information they reported in their PR visa application, best to see a lawyer

If it does not matter, probably enough to wait to see if IRCC has questions, and if IRCC has questions be prepared to accurately state the facts and explain how or why there was a mistake. EXCEPT, that is, unless it is an error, discrepancy, or inconsistency that is big enough to put the applicant's overall credibility into question.
I appreciate the very tborough analysis as usual
I am 100 oercent confident that all of my information except for that small difference of a month is accurate and up to date as I relied on records to report it, however, I just didnt find thebold records for that position and had to rely on memory which didnt skew me off by a lot

Thanj you again, it seems to me like an immaterial matter as it doesnt affect my PR or my citizenship eligibility by any means possible and me putting unemployed or not didnt benefit me from any angle possible. If was a complete oversight
 

ramz

Full Member
Nov 7, 2014
20
3
Hey, honestly, I wouldn't worry too much about it. I've been in similar situations where I couldn't remember exact dates for applications, and as long as it's not a huge gap or something that looks like intentional misrepresentation, you're probably okay. If it's just a difference of a month, they might not even notice or care. Worst case, they ask you for clarification, and you can explain what happened.
 
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